2021 Staff News and Updates
2021 Staff Award Winners
Staff members Gabriel Hare (Information Technology Group), Maria Sievers-Perotti (Research Support Group), and Shaina Lee (Undergraduate Laboratories) shared the 2021 Staff Award. Their extraordinary and creative efforts kept our research and teaching missions moving forward as we responded to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Quinquennial Staff Anniversaries from our May gathering:
Michael Endris, Mechanical Instrument Services, 10 years at IU, 2 years in the Department.
Kerry Fuentes, Research Support Group, 10 years at IU, 2 years in the Department.
Gabriel Hare, Information Technology Group, 10 years in the Department as a full-time staff member, 18 total years in the Department.
Nathan Miller, Mechanical Instrument Services, 10 years in the Department.
Ashley Mills, Business Office, 10 years at IU, 2 years in the Department.
Jeremy Anderson, Information Technology Group, 15 years as a full-time staff member, 20 years total with the Department.
Jeremy Boshears, Mechanical Instrument Services, 15 years in the Department.
Becky Wilson, Academic Office, 20 years at IU, 15 years in the Department.
Jackie Drake, Business Office, 40 years in the Department.
Don Garvin, Glass Blower, 40 years in the Department.
These anniversaries highlight the dedication of our technical and support staff. I am proud to call so many talented and dedicated individuals colleagues.
Staff Additions and Promotions:
Jewel Bezy joined the Department as a Financial Analyst in February. She was previously an Administrative Services Program Manager in the Department of Criminal Justice.
Ashley Mills was promoted to Director of Business in July after 2 years as Assistant Director of Business.
Chad Shaeffer became our new Building Manager in October. Chad had been serving as a Construction Manager in the University Capital Projects Office.
Cameron Kincaid joined the Business Office as our Seminar and Travel Coordinator on October 18.
Moe Pazos became our Assistant Director of Business in November. Moe had previously worked with IU Purchasing and the IU Laboratory Animal Research facility.
Amy Welch became one of our Undergraduate Academic Advisors in November.
Staff Departures:
Electronics Engineer David Bancroft left the University in November 2020; he had worked with Electronics Instrument Services for 7 years.
Web designer Danny McMurray left the University in December 2020. He was our web designer and a member of the Information Technology Group since 2014.
Machinist John Frye became Manager of Mechanical Instrument Services in the Physics Department in February after 2 years with Chemistry’s machine shop.
Talia Anderson left the Department in April after 12 months as Director of Business.
Matthew Kovach left the University in May after serving as the Chemistry Building Manager for 7 years.
Elizabeth Kang left the Department in August after nearly 2 years as seminar coordinator.
Kristen Ousley left the University in August after serving 2 years as the travel coordinator and 1 year as the seminar coordinator before that. She won the outstanding staff award for her contributions in May 2019.
Stephen Sturdevant left the Information Technology group in September after working for 2 years as an hourly technician.
Emily Davis left the University in October. She had been one of our Academic Advisors since 2018 and started working for IU in 2012.
Joel Mason left the Department in October; he worked in the Information Technology Group for 2 years.
John Poehlman retired from Electronics Instrument Services on October 30 after an amazing 32 years of service in the Department.
Scientist Updates:
Senior Scientist Helena Soini retired on December 31, 2020 after working as a senior researcher in the Institute for Pheromone Research and the Novotny Lab since 2001.
Senior Scientist Lyudmila Bronstein retired on June 1, 2021. She joined the department in 1998 and led a highly successful undergraduate research program during her tenure.
Veronica Carta was appointed as an Assistant Scientist in the Molecular Structure Center on July 1; she had been a post-doctoral research associate in the MSC since 2019. She will leave the Department on November 21 to become the Director of the X-Ray Crystallography Lab at UC Riverside.